US Forest Service firefighters aid relief efforts in New York and Pennsylvania

Firefighters work in front of a partially collapsed four-story apartment building in Manhattan.

VALLEJO, Calif. -

Southern California US forest service firefighters are joining relief efforts, in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

One hundred firefighters will be stationed at mobilization centers in New York and Pennsylvania.

The hot shot crews are joining an agency contingent that is already several hundred strong that was mobilized in the days prior to the incident and since the storm came ashore Monday evening.

Interagency Hotshot Crews were ordered through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The crew is a highly trained 20-person, wildland fire and all-risk group. They are considered a national firefighting resource.

Crews will be helping to clear downed trees from roads so that local responders can conduct search and rescue missions. They will also assist at FEMA logistics facilities that provide water and other commodities needed to sustain life, among other duties.

The duration of the assignment is likely to be between 14 days and a month.

Copyright 2014 Gulf California Broadcasting. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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